Improvement in the manufacture of iron and steel



l. PEDDER & G. ABEL. Manufature of- Irdn and Steel.

NO. 137,621. PatentedAprilSylSYS.

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PATENT OFFICE.

JOliilN PEDDER AND GEORGE ABEL, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPRovEMENTIN THE MANUFACTURE oF IRON AND STEEL.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 137,621, dated April8,1873; application filed `March 21, 1873. 'l

To all whom it may concern: i

' Manufacture of Iron and Steel; and we do hereby declare the followingto be a-full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being hadto the accompanying drawingmaking a part of this specification, in`whichy Figure 1 is an outside, and Fig. 2 a sectional, view of thecases employed in connection with our invention, and as a part thereof.

Like letters of reference indica-te like parts in each.

Our invention relates to the manufacture of iron and steel direct fromthe ore, by the introduction of carbonaceous gases from one chamber, inwhich they are generated or evolved under heat, into another chamber, inwhich are inclosed the ore or metallic oxides, the latter chamber beingpractically closed against the introduction of anybut the carbonaceousgases.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use our invention, wewill proceed to describe the same.

The ore, which is chemically a metallic oxide, is, with such uxingmaterial as may be desired or required, and hot or cold, inclosed in ametallic case, a, the end left open for charging being, after the caseis charged, closed by a lid, cap, or diaphragm, b, which is held inplace in any suitable way. This diaphragm has any desired number orarrangement of perforations, o c, of comparatively small size, butsufficient in size and number for the ,inliow of carbonaceous gas orvapor, which is driven off from the carbonaceous material, which isinclosed in a suitable chamber, d. This chamber is likewise closed atits charging end by a suitable diaphragm, cl, in which f areperforations c', as before. The chambers are then brought end to end,with the perforated diaphragms toward each other, and being properlysecured, are subjected, in any suitable furnace or heating-chamber, tothe action of such degree of heat as will drive off, generate, or evolvecarbonaceous gases or vapors from the carbons in the chamber d. Thesegases or vapors, having no other egress, must pass through into thechamber a, where they act on thc metallic oxides or orc in the mannerwell known in the treatment of such oxides or ores, and the gaseousproduct is allowed to escape from the opposite end of the case a by anysuitable escape-port, a. In such treatment the ore should be raised toabout a red heat, or, if so desired, even higher, provided that the ironitself be not fused or melted. When the ore is reduced the ore-chamberis separated from the other 5 and if it has (and we generally prefer tomake it so) a metallic case, such case and its contents may, by thehammer or rolls, or both, or by presses, be worked directly into abloom; or, it may be placed directly in a bath of molten metal in anysuitable furnace,pot, or crucible, be melted, and worked up intowrought-iron; or, with a portion or all the metallic contents of thefurnace, be run off into pig metal; or, it may be used, under likeconditions, in the manufacture of crucible or ingot steel, or, again,the case and its contents may be allowed to cool, and be disposed of,like pig metal or blooms, as an article of sale; but for many of theuses above indicated it is not essential that a metallic case beemployed.

Any suitable material may be employed for the case a, like fire-clayoraluminous or silicated earths, and such as are infusible andincombustible at the temperature required for reducing the ores in themanner described, and which would not materially interfere with thefurther manipulation or treatment of the re duced ores.

rI he time required for such reduction of the ores will vary somewhatwith the size of the charges, the degree of heat, the neness of the ore,&c. With a charge in the case a of three or four hundred pounds, and acorresponding amount of suitable carbonizing material in the case d, anda red heat, the reduction may ordinarily be effected in from four toeight hours; and the time required will be greater or less as the sizeof the charge is greater or less, or the degree of heat less or greater.

y The product thus given as the result of the reducing operation, withwhat is commonly known as Lake Superior and Missouri ores, is

a dark, brittle,nonlustrous substance, resembling, in its generalfeatures, what has long been known by the name of metalhc sponge.

The carbonchamber fl may., if so preferred,

be built into the Wall of the furnace in which the ore-charge is to bereduced, and be so arranged that the ore-case a may be directlyconnected therewith at pleasure, or placed in close juxtapositionthereto, so as to receive carbonaceous gases or vapors therefrom; and insuch case, While vthe inner end of the carbon-chamber is suitablyperforated, the carbon charge or charges may be introduced at the otherend, and the Work of reducing the ores be kept up continuously, a newore-case being introduced as soon as the former one is removed; andseveral such carbon and ore chambers and cases may be kept in operationsimultaneously in a single furnace; or, the carbonaceous material may bearranged in an outside retort, and the gases or vapors carried insidethe reducing- 'furnace by a pipe, which shall be so made at its innerend that it may, at pleasure, be connectedv with or detached from theore-case, so that when connected the gases or vapors from the pipe shallpass into the ore-case, as already described. Such pipe may have anoutside cock for regulating the 110W of the gas or vapor.

The object of inclosing the ore and the car- Abons in separate cases, asdescribed, instead of. 1n the same case, as has heretofore been done, isto avoid the loss of case-room and cost of case material resulting fromthe bulk of the carbons. A single carbon-case or retort, with one largeor several small charges, may be used with a. large number of ore-cases,with a consequent saving of expense.

What We claim as our invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

1. The process of reducing 'metallic oxides by inclosing them, withsuitable iluXes, in a case which shall be infnsible and incombustible ata reducing heat, and While so inclosed subjecting them, at a reducingtemperature, to the action of carbonaceous gases or vapors, or both,Which gases or vapors are evolved or generated in a separate case orretort and introduced into the ore-case, substantially as set into abath of molten metal in a furnace, re-

tort. or crucible, melting the same With such molten metal, and Workingup or drawin g off the resultant product, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof We, the said JOHN PEDDER and GEORGE ABEL, have4hereunto set our hands.

' JOHNv PEDDER. Witnesses: GEO. ABEL.

A. S. NrcHoLsoN,

G. H. GHRIsrY.

